Breelyn Wilky, MD

Associate Professor, Medicine-Medical Oncology


FacultyPhoto
Medical School
  • MD, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (2006)
Undergraduate School
  • BS, Bates College (ME) (2001)
Internship
  • Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Program (2007)
Residency
  • Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Program, Internal Medicine (2009)
Fellowships
  • Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine Program, Medical Oncology (2013)
Languages
English
Department
Medicine-Medical Oncology

Professional Titles

  • Director of Sarcoma Medical Oncology
  • Deputy Associate Director for Clinical Research
  • The Cheryl Bennett and McNeilly Family Endowed Chair in Sarcoma Research

Research Interests

Laboratory investigation of sarcoma immune microenvironment and immunotherapy combinations.

Publications

  • Trucco MM, Meyer CF, Thornton KA, Shah P, Chen AR, Wilky BA, Carrera-Haro MA, Boyer LC, Ferreira MF, Shafique U, Powell JD, Loeb DM. A phase II study of temsirolimus and liposomal doxorubicin for patients with recurrent and refractory bone and soft tissue sarcomas. Clin Sarcoma Res. 2018;8:21. PubMed PMID: 30410720
  • Khazeni K, LaBove H, Wilky B, Rosenberg AE, Paulus E, Chim H, Pearson JM, Yakoub D. Myoepithelial carcinoma or epithelioid sarcoma - A rare diagnosis with poor prognosis. A case report and review of literature. Int J Surg Case Rep. 2018;49:239-243. PubMed PMID: 30053614
  • Espejo AP, Ramdial JL, Wilky BA, Kerr DA, Trent JC. A nonrandom association of sarcoidosis in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumor and other sarcomas. Rare Tumors. 2018;10:2036361318787626. PubMed PMID: 30038741
  • Ramey SJ, Yechieli R, Zhao W, Kodiyan J, Asher D, Chinea FM, Patel V, Reis IM, Wang L, Wilky BA, Subhawong T, Trent JC 2nd. Limb-sparing surgery plus radiotherapy results in superior survival: an analysis of patients with high-grade, extremity soft-tissue sarcoma from the NCDB and SEER. Cancer Med. 2018 Sep;7(9):4228-4239. PubMed PMID: 30030882
  • Ezuddin NS, Pretell-Mazzini J, Yechieli RL, Kerr DA, Wilky BA, Subhawong TK. Local recurrence of soft-tissue sarcoma: issues in imaging surveillance strategy. Skeletal Radiol. 2018 Dec;47(12):1595-1606. PubMed PMID: 29785452
  • Sebio A, Wilky BA, Keedy VL, Jones RL. The current landscape of early drug development for patients with sarcoma in the immunotherapy era. Future Oncol. 2018 May;14(12):1197-1211. PubMed PMID: 29699407
  • Alavi SN, Florou V, Tinoco G, Trent JC, Wilky BA. A precision medicine approach in sarcoma: identification of patients who may benefit from early use of pazopanib. Discov Med. 2018 Mar;25(137):131-144. PubMed PMID: 29641974
  • Florou V, Wilky BA. Current and Future Directions for Angiosarcoma Therapy. Curr Treat Options Oncol. 2018 Mar 8;19(3):14. PubMed PMID: 29520447
  • Upadhyaya SA, McGee RB, Wilky BA, Broniscer A. Malignant progression of a peripheral nerve sheath tumor in the setting of rhabdoid tumor predisposition syndrome. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2018 Jul;65(7):e27030. PubMed PMID: 29512865
  • Florou V, Wilky BA. Part I: The Immune Sarcoma Microenvironment: 3. Regulatory T Cells. In: Immunotherapy of Sarcoma. D’Angelo S, Pollack S (eds). Springer Nature. 2019
  • Jonczak E, Wilky BA. Alveolar soft part sarcoma. In: Sarcomas: Evidence-Based Diagnosis and Management. Trent JC, Rosenberg AE, Delaney T, Pollack R (eds).
  • Florou V, Wilky BA, Rosenblatt JD, Zhang Y. B Cells in the Tumor Microenvironment. In: Cancer Immunotherapy Principles and Practice. Kirkwood J, Boyiadzis M, Whiteside T (eds). McGraw-Hill.
  • Florou V, Rosenberg AE, Wieder E, Komanduri KV, Kolonias D, Uduman M, Castle JC, Buell JS, Trent JC, Wilky BA. Correction to: Angiosarcoma patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: a case series of seven patients from a single institution. J Immunother Cancer. 2019 Nov 6;7(1):285. PubMed PMID: 31694703
  • Ramachandran I, Lowther DE, Dryer-Minnerly R, Wang R, Fayngerts S, Nunez D, Betts G, Bath N, Tipping AJ, Melchiori L, Navenot JM, Glod J, Mackall CL, D'Angelo SP, Araujo DM, Chow WA, Demetri GD, Druta M, Van Tine BA, Grupp SA, Abdul Razak AR, Wilky B, Iyengar M, Trivedi T, Winkle EV, Chagin K, Amado R, Binder GK, Basu S. Systemic and local immunity following adoptive transfer of NY-ESO-1 SPEAR T cells in synovial sarcoma. J Immunother Cancer. 2019 Oct 24;7(1):276. PubMed PMID: 31651363
  • Kerr DA, Pinto A, Subhawong TK, Wilky BA, Schlumbrecht MP, Antonescu CR, Nielsen GP, Rosenberg AE. Pericytoma With t(7;12) and ACTB-GLI1 Fusion: Reevaluation of an Unusual Entity and its Relationship to the Spectrum of GLI1 Fusion-related Neoplasms. Am J Surg Pathol. 2019 Dec;43(12):1682-1692. PubMed PMID: 31567194
  • Florou V, Rosenberg AE, Wieder E, Komanduri KV, Kolonias D, Uduman M, Castle JC, Buell JS, Trent JC, Wilky BA. Angiosarcoma patients treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors: a case series of seven patients from a single institution. J Immunother Cancer. 2019 Aug 8;7(1):213. PubMed PMID: 31395100
  • Wilky BA. Immune checkpoint inhibitors: The linchpins of modern immunotherapy. Immunol Rev. 2019 Jul;290(1):6-23. PubMed PMID: 31355494
  • Hall F, Villalobos V, Wilky B. Future directions in soft tissue sarcoma treatment. Curr Probl Cancer. 2019 Aug;43(4):300-307. PubMed PMID: 31229264
  • Wilky BA, Trucco MM, Subhawong TK, Florou V, Park W, Kwon D, Wieder ED, Kolonias D, Rosenberg AE, Kerr DA, Sfakianaki E, Foley M, Merchan JR, Komanduri KV, Trent JC. Axitinib plus pembrolizumab in patients with advanced sarcomas including alveolar soft-part sarcoma: a single-centre, single-arm, phase 2 trial. Lancet Oncol. 2019 Jun;20(6):837-848. PubMed PMID: 31078463
  • Yu-Cherng CC, Mahan J, Subhawong TK, Wilky BA, Breto AL, Diwanji T, Yechieli R, Stoyanova R. Quantitative imaging features of habitats in soft tissue sarcomas are associated with treatment response: A pilot study. Cancer Stud Ther J. 2019. 4(3):1-6.
  • Florou V, Trent JC, Wilky BA. Precision medicine in gastrointestinal stromal tumors. Discov Med. 2019 Nov-Dec;28(155):267-276. PubMed PMID: 32053767
  • Li L, Hu X, Eid JE, Rosenberg AE, Wilky BA, Ban Y, Sun X, Galoian K, DeSalvo J, Yue J, Chen XS, Blonska M, Trent JC. Mutant IDH1 Depletion Downregulates Integrins and Impairs Chondrosarcoma Growth. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Jan 6;12(1). PubMed PMID: 31935911
  • Disel U, Madison R, Abhishek K, Chung JH, Trabucco SE, Matos AO, Frampton GM, Albacker LA, Reddy V, Karadurmus N, Benson A, Webster J, Paydas S, Cabanillas R, Nangia C, Ozturk MA, Millis SZ, Pal SK, Wilky B, Sokol ES, Gay LM, Soman S, Ganesan S, Janeway K, Stephens PJ, Zhu VW, Ou SI, Lovly CM, Gounder M, Schrock AB, Ross JS, Miller VA, Klempner SJ, Ali SM. The Pan-Cancer Landscape of Coamplification of the Tyrosine Kinases KIT, KDR, and PDGFRA. Oncologist. 2020 Jan;25(1):e39-e47. PubMed PMID: 31604903
  • Kerr DA, Brcic I, Diaz-Perez JA, Shih A, Wilky BA, Pretell-Mazzini J, Subhawong TK, Nielsen GP, Rosenberg AE. Immunohistochemical Characterization of Giant Cell Tumor of Bone Treated With Denosumab: Support for Osteoblastic Differentiation. Am J Surg Pathol. 2021 Jan;45(1):93-100. PubMed PMID: 32773532
  • Li L, Hu X, Eid JE, Rosenberg AE, Wilky BA, Ban Y, Sun X, Galoian K, DeSalvo J, Yue J, Chen XS, Blonska M, Trent JC. Mutant IDH1 Depletion Downregulates Integrins and Impairs Chondrosarcoma Growth. Cancers (Basel). 2020 Jan 6;12(1). PubMed PMID: 31935911
  • Disel U, Madison R, Abhishek K, Chung JH, Trabucco SE, Matos AO, Frampton GM, Albacker LA, Reddy V, Karadurmus N, Benson A, Webster J, Paydas S, Cabanillas R, Nangia C, Ozturk MA, Millis SZ, Pal SK, Wilky B, Sokol ES, Gay LM, Soman S, Ganesan S, Janeway K, Stephens PJ, Zhu VW, Ou SI, Lovly CM, Gounder M, Schrock AB, Ross JS, Miller VA, Klempner SJ, Ali SM. The Pan-Cancer Landscape of Coamplification of the Tyrosine Kinases KIT, KDR, and PDGFRA. Oncologist. 2020 Jan;25(1):e39-e47. PubMed PMID: 31604903
  • Muir L, Woelfle J, Wilky BA. High grade sarcoma presenting as multifocal recurrent seromas after inguinal hernia repair: A case report. Rare Tumors.
  • Florou V, Puri S, Garrido-Laguna I, Wilky BA. Considerations for immunotherapy in patients with cancer and comorbid immune dysfunction. Ann Transl Med.
  • Smith BD, Kaufman MD, Wise SC, Ahn YM, Caldwell TM, Leary CB, Lu WP, Tan G, Vogeti L, Vogeti S, Wilky BA, Davis LE, Sharma M, Ruiz-Soto R, Flynn DL. Vimseltinib: A Precision CSF1R Therapy for Tenosynovial Giant Cell Tumors and Diseases Promoted by Macrophages. Mol Cancer Ther. 2021 Nov;20(11):2098-2109. PubMed PMID: 34433663
  • Florou V, Puri S, Garrido-Laguna I, Wilky BA. Considerations for immunotherapy in patients with cancer and comorbid immune dysfunction. Ann Transl Med. 2021 Jun;9(12):1035. PubMed PMID: 34277835
  • Subhawong TK, Feister K, Sweet K, Alperin N, Kwon D, Rosenberg A, Trent J, Wilky BA. MRI Volumetrics and Image Texture Analysis in Assessing Systemic Treatment Response in Extra-Abdominal Desmoid Fibromatosis. Radiol Imaging Cancer. 2021 Jul;3(4):e210016. PubMed PMID: 34213370
  • Florou V, Wilky BA. Current Management of Angiosarcoma: Recent Advances and Lessons From the Past. Curr Treat Options Oncol. 2021 Jun 7;22(7):61. PubMed PMID: 34097172
  • Stacchiotti S, Frezza AM, Blay JY, Baldini EH, Bonvalot S, Bovée JVMG, Callegaro D, Casali PG, Chiang RC, Demetri GD, Demicco EG, Desai J, Eriksson M, Gelderblom H, George S, Gounder MM, Gronchi A, Gupta A, Haas RL, Hayes-Jardon A, Hohenberger P, Jones KB, Jones RL, Kasper B, Kawai A, Kirsch DG, Kleinerman ES, Le Cesne A, Lim J, Chirlaque López MD, Maestro R, Marcos-Gragera R, Martin Broto J, Matsuda T, Mir O, Patel SR, Raut CP, Razak ARA, Reed DR, Rutkowski P, Sanfilippo RG, Sbaraglia M, Schaefer IM, Strauss DC, Sundby Hall K, Tap WD, Thomas DM, van der Graaf WTA, van Houdt WJ, Visser O, von Mehren M, Wagner AJ, Wilky BA, Won YJ, Fletcher CDM, Dei Tos AP, Trama A. Ultra-rare sarcomas: A consensus paper from the Connective Tissue Oncology Society community of experts on the incidence threshold and the list of entities. Cancer. 2021 Aug 15;127(16):2934-2942. PubMed PMID: 33910263
  • Chang YC, Stoyanova R, Danilova S, Pretell-Mazzini JA, Kerr DA, Wilky BA, Subhawong T. Radiomics on radiography predicts giant cell tumor histologic response to denosumab. Skeletal Radiol. 2021 Sep;50(9):1881-1887. PubMed PMID: 33733693
  • Kasper B, Achee A, Schuster K, Wilson R, van Oortmerssen G, Gladdy RA, Hemming ML, Huang P, Ingham M, Jones RL, Pollack SM, Reinke D, Sanfilippo R, Schuetze SM, Somaiah N, Van Tine BA, Wilky B, Okuno S, Trent J. Unmet Medical Needs and Future Perspectives for Leiomyosarcoma Patients-A Position Paper from the National LeioMyoSarcoma Foundation (NLMSF) and Sarcoma Patients EuroNet (SPAEN). Cancers (Basel). 2021 Feb 20;13(4). PubMed PMID: 33672607
  • Kerr DA, Brcic I, Diaz-Perez JA, Shih A, Wilky BA, Pretell-Mazzini J, Subhawong TK, Nielsen GP, Rosenberg AE. Immunohistochemical Characterization of Giant Cell Tumor of Bone Treated With Denosumab: Support for Osteoblastic Differentiation. Am J Surg Pathol. 2021 Jan;45(1):93-100. PubMed PMID: 32773532
  • Carter BM, Bronsert MR, Wilky BA, McCarter MD. Mucosal Ulceration in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor is an Independent Predictor of Progression-Free Survival. J Surg Res. 2022 Dec 30;284:221-229. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 36587482
  • Stacchiotti S, Maria Frezza A, Demetri GD, Blay JY, Bajpai J, Baldi GG, Baldini EH, Benjamin RS, Bonvalot S, Bovée JVMG, Callegaro D, Casali PG, D'Angelo SP, Davis EJ, Dei Tos AP, Demicco EG, Desai J, Dileo P, Eriksson M, Gelderblom H, George S, Gladdy RA, Gounder MM, Gupta AA, Haas R, Hayes A, Hohenberger P, Jones KB, Jones RL, Kasper B, Kawai A, Kirsch DG, Kleinerman ES, Le Cesne A, Maestro R, Martin Broto J, Maki RG, Miah AB, Palmerini E, Patel SR, Raut CP, Razak ARA, Reed DR, Rutkowski P, Sanfilippo RG, Sbaraglia M, Schaefer IM, Strauss DC, Strauss SJ, Tap WD, Thomas DM, Trama A, Trent JC, van der Graaf WTA, van Houdt WJ, von Mehren M, Wilky BA, Fletcher CDM, Gronchi A, Miceli R, Wagner AJ. Retrospective observational studies in ultra-rare sarcomas: A consensus paper from the Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS) community of experts on the minimum requirements for the evaluation of activity of systemic treatments. Cancer Treat Rev. 2022 Nov;110:102455. PubMed PMID: 36031697
  • Moreno Tellez C, Leyfman Y, D'Angelo SP, Wilky BA, Dufresne A. Immunotherapy in Sarcoma: Where Do Things Stand?. Surg Oncol Clin N Am. 2022 Jul;31(3):381-397. PubMed PMID: 35715140
  • Florou V, Wilky BA. Emerging mechanisms of immunotherapy resistance in sarcomas. Cancer Drug Resist. 2022;5(1):199-213. PubMed PMID: 35582530
  • Kasper B, Wilky BA. Sounding the Alarm on Leiomyosarcoma Recurrence: Role of Circulating Tumor DNA. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 Jun 13;28(12):2480-2481. PubMed PMID: 35412607
  • Nathenson MJ, Hu J, Ratan R, Somaiah N, Hsu R, DeMaria PJ, Catoe HW, Pang A, Subhawong TK, Amini B, Sweet K, Feister K, Malik K, Jagannathan J, Braschi-Amirfarzan M, Sheren J, Caldas Y, Moreno Tellez C, Rosenberg AE, Lazar AJ, Maki RG, Benedetto P, Cohen J, Trent JC, Ravi V, Patel S, Wilky BA. Systemic Chemotherapies Retain Antitumor Activity in Desmoid Tumors Independent of Specific Mutations in CTNNB1 or APC: A Multi-institutional Retrospective Study. Clin Cancer Res. 2022 Sep 15;28(18):4092-4104. PubMed PMID: 35180772
  • Gounder M, Ratan R, Alcindor T, Schöffski P, van der Graaf WT, Wilky BA, Riedel RF, Lim A, Smith LM, Moody S, Attia S, Chawla S, D'Amato G, Federman N, Merriam P, Van Tine BA, Vincenzi B, Benson C, Bui NQ, Chugh R, Tinoco G, Charlson J, Dileo P, Hartner L, Lapeire L, Mazzeo F, Palmerini E, Reichardt P, Stacchiotti S, Bailey HH, Burgess MA, Cote GM, Davis LE, Deshpande H, Gelderblom H, Grignani G, Loggers E, Philip T, Pressey JG, Kummar S, Kasper B. Nirogacestat, a ?-Secretase Inhibitor for Desmoid Tumors. N Engl J Med. 2023 Mar 9;388(10):898-912. PubMed PMID: 36884323
  • Wilky BA, Maleddu A. Much Ado about ASPS: The Rapidly Changing Treatment Paradigms of 2022. Clin Cancer Res. 2023 Apr 3;29(7):1163-1166. PubMed PMID: 36692840
  • Florou V, Floudas CS, Maoz A, Naqash AR, Norton C, Tan AC, Sokol ES, Frampton G, Soares HP, Puri S, Swami U, Wilky B, Hosein P, Trent J, Lopes GL, Park W, Garrido-Laguna I. Real-world pan-cancer landscape of frameshift mutations and their role in predicting responses to immune checkpoint inhibitors in cancers with low tumor mutational burden. J Immunother Cancer. 2023 Aug;11(8). PubMed PMID: 37586768
  • Maleddu A, Zhu J, Clay MR, Wilky BA. Current therapies and future prospective for locally aggressive mesenchymal tumors. Front Oncol. 2023;13:1160239. PubMed PMID: 37546427
  • Randolph ME, Afifi M, Gorthi A, Weil R, Wilky BA, Weinreb J, Ciero P, Ter Hoeve N, van Diest PJ, Raman V, Bishop AJR, Loeb DM. RNA Helicase DDX3 Regulates RAD51 Localization and DNA Damage Repair in Ewing Sarcoma. bioRxiv. 2023 Jun 10. PubMed PMID: 37333164
  • Subbiah V, Chawla SP, Conley AP, Wilky BA, Tolcher A, Lakhani NJ, Berz D, Andrianov V, Crago W, Holcomb M, Hussain A, Veldstra C, Kalabus J, O'Neill B, Senne L, Rowell E, Heidt AB, Willis KM, Eckelman BP. Preclinical Characterization and Phase I Trial Results of INBRX-109, A Third-Generation, Recombinant, Humanized, Death Receptor 5 Agonist Antibody, in Chondrosarcoma. Clin Cancer Res. 2023 Aug 15;29(16):2988-3003. PubMed PMID: 37265425
  • Ludwig MP, Galbraith MD, Eduthan NP, Hill AA, Clay MR, Tellez CM, Wilky BA, Elias A, Espinosa JM, Sullivan KD. Proteasome Inhibition Sensitizes Liposarcoma to MDM2 Inhibition with Nutlin-3 by Activating the ATF4/CHOP Stress Response Pathway. Cancer Res. 2023 Aug 1;83(15):2543-2556. PubMed PMID: 37205634
  • Gounder M, Ratan R, Alcindor T, Schöffski P, van der Graaf WT, Wilky BA, Riedel RF, Lim A, Smith LM, Moody S, Attia S, Chawla S, D'Amato G, Federman N, Merriam P, Van Tine BA, Vincenzi B, Benson C, Bui NQ, Chugh R, Tinoco G, Charlson J, Dileo P, Hartner L, Lapeire L, Mazzeo F, Palmerini E, Reichardt P, Stacchiotti S, Bailey HH, Burgess MA, Cote GM, Davis LE, Deshpande H, Gelderblom H, Grignani G, Loggers E, Philip T, Pressey JG, Kummar S, Kasper B. Nirogacestat, a ?-Secretase Inhibitor for Desmoid Tumors. N Engl J Med. 2023 Mar 9;388(10):898-912. PubMed PMID: 36884323
  • Wilky BA, Maleddu A. Much Ado about ASPS: The Rapidly Changing Treatment Paradigms of 2022. Clin Cancer Res. 2023 Apr 3;29(7):1163-1166. PubMed PMID: 36692840
  • Carter BM, Bronsert MR, Wilky BA, McCarter MD. Mucosal Ulceration in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor is an Independent Predictor of Progression-Free Survival. J Surg Res. 2023 Apr;284:221-229. PubMed PMID: 36587482

Professional Memberships

  • American Society of Clinical Oncology, Member
  • Connective Tissue Oncology Society, Member

Practice Locations

University of Colorado Cancer Center - Anschutz Medical Campus
1665 Aurora Ct
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0300

UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital (UCH)
12605 E. 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0000

UCHealth Diane O'Connor Thompson Breast Center - Anschutz
1635 Aurora Ct
3rd Floor
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-1030

UCHealth Anschutz Inpatient Pavilion - Anschutz Medical Campus
12605 E. 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
720-848-0000

Hospital Affiliation
  • University of Colorado Hospital

Center Affiliations

Specialty Information

Specialties
  • Medical Oncology, Board Certification (2011)
Conditions & Treatments
  • Cancers - Sarcoma
  • Cancers
  • Cancers - Bone Cancer
  • Cancers - Chemotherapy
Clinical Interests
I take care of patients with all kinds of bone and soft tissue tumors and cancers, including sarcomas, desmoid tumors, GIST, and PVNS (tenosynovial giant cell tumor). I an an expert not only in standard chemotherapy treatments, but also am active in clinical trials including immunotherapy, and personalized/precision medicine.

Care Philosophy
I believe that medicine, especially cancer medicine, is best practiced as a partnership between doctors, researchers, and patients. Decisions are always best made as a team effort, taking into account every aspect of a patient's unique situation!

Personal Interests
I enjoy hiking and camping, my Peloton bike, and I love traveling! I have also recently picked back up playing piano, a hobby and passion that has been on the back burner since medical school.

Volunteer Activities
I am active with several patient-initiated foundations as an advisory board member, helping to empower patients, families and advocates to advance research to find a cure for sarcomas.

Public Speaking
Yes
I enjoy speaking to patients, families, and physicians in the community to raise awareness of sarcomas and to provide updates on new research including immunotherapy. Many videos and talks can be found online as well!